Chapter 5

NICOLETTE

Twenty minutes had passed since Mr. Ozric sat down, but he hadn’t so much as said a single word to me, or even glanced my way. Instead, he’d been charming the other members of the table, who all stared at him with adoration, laughing and nodding at everything he said.

Of course they were drooling over him. His inhumanly gorgeous appearance aside, as the top benefactor of the university, he was paying the salaries of everyone at the table. I learned that he was the CEO and owner of a multibillion-dollar company. Ozric International Conglomerate.

So I just sat there, silent, looking at my hands.

“Do you like to travel, Ms. Holland?” He finally directed a question toward me, a slight smile on his face.

“For work, yes.”

“Not for pleasure?”

“My work keeps me very busy, and it’s full of travel.”

“Yes, sure. Traveling to all sorts of exotic, mysterious places. I suppose dangerous places too.”

“Sometimes.” I cleared my throat and tried to focus on my mango meringue. But when I felt his hand grab the skin of my bare thigh, I almost choked.

He leaned in close. “Have you been anywhere interesting recently?” he whispered in my ear. His voice was smoky and seductive, but laced with a hint of menace.

“If you’ll excuse me, I’d like to use the powder room.” I quickly stood and his hand dropped from my leg. Without giving him a glance, I turned and walked across the room, feeling his gaze burning into me from behind.

I burst into the bright, white-tiled ladies’ room and rushed to the sink. My hands felt icy cold, so I opened the faucet and adjusted it to hot. The water immediately soothed me.

I stared at myself in the mirror, heaved a breath, and shut my eyes for a moment.

~Calm down, Nikki. Yes, that man looks exactly like the man from the mirror. Maybe it is him. But how did he get here?~

I could hear his words in my mind. ~“Have you been anywhere interesting recently?” ~He’d said them like he was playing with me. Like he ~knew~.

When it came to the king, I knew he was powerful and dangerous, but when it came to Mr. Ozric, I had no idea what I was dealing with.

My heart was thundering, threatening to jump out of my chest, and I could still feel my thigh tingling from where he had gripped it.

~I should leave. Now. I need to get away from him.~

~But wait. Why should I leave?~

I clenched my jaw and snapped my eyes open, determination flowing inside me. With a stern glare, I gave myself a mental pep talk.

~This is your world, Nikki, and you’re not a schoolgirl anymore. You’re here for work. You need to be professional. Don’t let this spoiled, arrogant man crawl under your skin. He may be a king in his world, but in this world he’s not. ~

I was probably the only woman at the function who hadn’t given him lustful stares when he entered, and I was proud of that. So after another deep breath, I left the bathroom and returned to the table, a newfound calmness on my face.

When I took my seat, he was sipping his wine, broad shoulders relaxed.

“I was beginning to think you had gone,” he said.

“And what makes you think I’d do that, Mr. Ozric?”

“You just seemed…intimidated.”

A short, soft laugh escaped my mouth. ~Very straightforward. And very cocky. ~“I don’t even know you. Why would I be intimidated?” I kept my voice as sharp and unbroken as possible.

He stared at me with interrogating eyes. Eyes that could strip you down to your soul.

Before he could answer, Professor Mallorie tapped me on the shoulder. “Ms. Holland, Mr. Ozric, come. It’s time to tour the museum.”

Mr. Ozric’s eyes flicked away from mine, and I felt a weight lift off my shoulders. I took my clutch, getting ready to stand up, but Mr. Ozric was already towering over me with a hand outstretched.

“Shall we go?” he asked.

I glanced at Professor Mallorie, who was pretending not to see the man’s obvious interest in me, then back at Mr. Ozric. “We shall.” I ignored his hand and stood up, walking alone toward the small group entering the first floor of the museum.

~Not so cocky now, are you?~

I lingered near the front of the group, trying to stay near the professor, and added comments about the artifacts, many of which I had donated myself.

Most were from my trips to Egypt, Scandinavia, and China. Unlike the mirror in the archives, these were some of my proudest discoveries, displayed for everyone to see.

That said, I couldn’t help but blush when we came to a giant phallus-shaped wood carving.

“Ms. Holland, would you like to say a few words about this carving you found in South Africa?” the professor asked.

“While we don’t know which peoples created it, it’s safe to say that this”—I cleared my throat—“exaggerated phallus was likely the representation of their god’s manhood. Any female that crossed its path was likely to lose herself in ecstasy.”

My eyes scanned the faces in the group and—unintentionally—found Mr. Ozric.

His lips curved slightly when he looked at me, then his sights dipped to my cleavage—to the sweetheart neckline of the dress I thought was conservative. He seemed to be looking through the fabric. He made me feel naked.

“Moving on to another piece donated by Ms. Holland,” Professor Mallorie said as the group turned a corner. “A mirror found in a recent excavation in Malta.”

“What?” I hissed, whipping my head around to see that accursed mirror hanging on the wall. “I thought I asked you to store it for me in the archives?” I tried to keep my voice down.

“Well, we had extra room in the exhibit, and it’s a beautiful mirror.” The professor looked confused. “Is everything okay, Nikki?”

“Y-yes, I’m fine.” I tried to compose myself as the whole group looked at me, concerned. In particular, I could feel Mr. Ozric’s eyes studying me with interest.

“Well then, I suppose let’s move on,” the professor said, eager to continue the tour.

We all started to follow, but someone grabbed my arm. ~He~ grabbed my arm. He held his grasp until the group turned a corner. We were now alone in the gallery.

“A mirror?” His voice was low.

“Yes, it’s a mirror. Very perceptive, Mr. Ozric.” I tried to show no fear.

He stepped in front of it, and from where I was standing, I could see his reflection. It reminded me of last night. Of the man in the mirror. This man. Stripping me. Touching me.

“We should catch up with the group.” I quickly pulled my mind away from the growing wetness between my legs.

“Where did you keep this mirror before you gave it away?” he asked, leaning in closer as if he could sense my arousal.

“In my bedroom.”

“Hmm, your bedroom, huh?”

It could have been my imagination, but his voice turned huskier when he said it.

He stepped closer, staring at me with intensity. “Where did you get this mirror, Nicolette?” My name rolled off his tongue like it was meant to live there.

“Like Professor Mallorie said. Malta.”

His gaze became cold and sent a chill down my spine. But it didn’t extinguish the fire that was growing in my core.

We were close enough that I could smell his intoxicating cologne. His eyes flicked down to my lips.

I felt his hand grab my hip, pulling me even closer. “Do not lie, Ms. Holland. Where did you ~really~ find it?”

Before I could answer, I felt his hand slide up my side and over my breast, toward my face. But he stopped just under it, his fingers stroking my neck.

“Answer me.”

“I…I, uh,” I stammered, flustered. “I think…we should go back to the group.”

His fingers then wrapped around my throat, and my heart rate quickened as arousal and fear began to weave together, keeping me in his grasp.

But his face shifted from seductive to angry, giving me the same scowl as he did in the other world. And he squeezed, his vicelike grip also identical.

If I’d still had doubts, they were now gone. This was the same man. The king.

“Let me go!” I said through clenched teeth. “You’re…you’re hurting me.”

He brought his face closer. His icy eyes were now also filled with fire. “Who are you? Who do you work for?”

“Ms. Holland? Mr. Ozric?” Professor Mallorie’s voice echoed through the gallery.

~Thank God.~

Mr. Ozric’s hand fell away just as the professor stepped around the corner.

When he saw how close we were, he cleared his throat. “Am I interrupting something?” Professor Mallorie looked at me. He must have seen the fear on my face.

“No, not at all, Professor. She was just explaining the history of this fascinating mirror.” Mr. Ozric sounded as if nothing had happened at all.

“Would you care to join us on the second floor?” The professor extended his arm, signaling for us to follow.

We both nodded, and I stuck close to the professor. I could feel Mr. Ozric’s stormy gaze on my back.

My mind was racing, trying to figure out a way to put as much distance as I could between me and the man who—again—had his fingers around my throat.

I didn’t want to find out what would happen if we found ourselves alone again.